Flexible grille



April 14, 1936. M. L. CORNELL ET AL FLEXI BLE GRILLE Filed April 26, 1955 2 Sheets-Shea?l l HWHWIIHH..

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Patented Apr. 14, 1936 UNITED lSTATES PATENT OFFICE FLEXIBLE GRILLE York Application April 26, 1935, Serial No. 18,388

11 Claims. (Cl. 18S-56) This invention relates to flexible overhead acting grilles of the kind which are adapted to form a door closure which may be wound up about a shaft.

A general object of the invention is to provide grilles of this kind wherein improved means is provided for coiling and supporting the grille about its shaft.

More specifically, objects of the invention are to provide a grille having laterally extending rods, together with means for supporting these rods against sagging when they are coiled in their overhead position.

Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises an article of manufacture possessing the features, properties, and the relation of elements which will be exemplified in the article hereinafter described and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention reference should be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in

which: I

Fig. 1 is a contracted fragmentary rear elevation of the upper part of a grille embodying features of the present invention, certain parts being shown in section better to illustrate the construction Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken substantially along line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken substantially along line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing an alining end link per se;

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of a specially thickened vertical link used in the present grille;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of an ordinary Vertical link, also used in the. present grille; and

Fig. 7 is a side elevation of an other form of specially thickened link corresponding to that of Fig. 5.

At the present time there is an increasing demand in this country for open work grille types of door closures, particularly in the case of large openings. The lightness, cheapness of construction and comparative ease with which these grilles may be assembled are Very advantageous, but the difficulty of coiling or alining such a loosely linked structure around a shaft while maintaining freedom of operation has heretofore presented vexatious problems. Also, when 'the grille is formed with rods which extend laterally from side to side thereof, there is a tendency for these rods to sag in the middle when they are in lcoiled position. Since some door openings to which these grilled closures are applied are as much as 30 ft. wide, this sagging of the rods is 5 quite pronounced and this is true to a lesser extent even in the case of ordinary garage door openings on the order of eight feet in width.

In accordance with the present invention, a grille having such laterally extending rods is pro- 10 vided in which proper coiling is assured, and in which sagging of the rods also is prevented.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, there is shown a shaft I0 mounted in bearings II over a door opening. The shaft I 0 has bush- 15 ings I2 on which is mounted an exterior hollow shaft I3. Shaft I3 in turn has at its ends supporting collars I4 which have like spirally shaped peripheries, as shown in Fig. 3, and are adapted to have the end links about to be described coiled 20 up on them.

An angle iron I5 spans the two collars I4 and is attached thereto. The grille structure per se is attached to this iron by means of suitable metal straps I6 or the like (Fig. 2) which are located 25 laterally across the grille at suitably spaced intervals.

The grille itself comprises laterally extending rods I'I which are joined at their ends by side links I8. The respective ends I9 and 20 of each 30 of these links are offset on opposite sides of a longitudinal axis thereof, and are provided with rod accommodating openings 2|. This enables the links connecting adjacent rods to be overlapped while maintaining their body portions in alinement, and retention of this alinement during coiling of the grille is assured by providing one edge of each link with a rib 22 and the other edge with a groove 23 complementary to the rib on other links. These ribs and grooves hold the various side links in alinement when the grille is coiled, as shown in Fig. 3.

This aligning principle is the same as that described and claimed in my copending application Serial No. 695,794, and does not form a part of the present invention except in so far as it is used in combination with other features described herein.

The end links may be held against lateral slippage with respect to the several rods I'I by 50 any suitable form of clip, collar, or the like, retaining means such as those shown in my above mentioned application preferably being used for this purpose. In addition to the end links I8, the laterally extending rods I1 are joined by verti- 55 cal links 24, which may be held against lateral sliding movement along the rod I'I by crimping the latter as indicated at 25, or by any other suitable means, including those shown in my mentioned copending application. The links 24A connecting two given rods are alternately spaced with respect to the similar links connecting, say, the lower of such given rods with that next beneath it. That is, in a vertically extending series of links 24, the individual links are in alinement, but are spaced vertically as shown in Fig. 1.

The rods I'I and links 24 are conveniently and economically made of metal stock of the same gage and dimensions. Referring to Fig. 4, it will be seen that the edge links I8 are` of greater thickness than the stock of rods I'I so that during coiling of the grille the rods I'I and their associated links 24 are held out of contact with each other. In other words, if other means were not employed, each rod I'I, in its coiled position, would be supported only at its ends and extend from side to side of the grille shaft without support from the rest of the grille structure. Heretofore, under these circumstances, the lateral rods of such grilles tended to sag down in the middle when coiled, this sag being quite pronounced in the case of wide grilles.

In accordance with the present invention, this sagging is prevented by replacing at least one set of vertically alined links 24 with specially congured supporting links 26, which are enlarged as compared with the links 24, this enlargement comprising so shaping the supporting links that they extend out of the plane of the particular convolution in which they happen to be located in the coiled position of the grille, so as mutually to engage and support other links in the next adjacent convolutions. Thus, the links 26 may be made thicker than the links 24, and may also have their ends as at 21 extended substantially beyond their rod accommodating opening 28 so that in the coiled position of the grille (Fig. 2) these links contact and support one another. The preferred enlargement thus comprises both thickening and elongating links 26 as compared with links 24, but it is contemplated that the enlarged links may have such properties alternatively as well as conjointly. Because of this enlargement, as the grille is coiled, the several rods I7, which would tend to sag when independently supported, are enabled to act in unison in resisting such deiiection, and provide a rigid coiled structure. In addition, if desired, an added support such as a collar, or collars, 29 may be mounted on the shaft I3 adjacent each series of thickened links 2E. This collar has a spirally shaped periphery similar to, but of somewhat greater over-all dimensions than that of collars I4, in order that it may abut and support the innermost coiled rods I I as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2. The rods on the upper part of the coil may, with the aid of the thickened links 26, thus be positively supported against downward flexure, while the rods on the lower half of the coil are indirectly held against iiexure through being tied to the upper rods by the various grille links. However, as pointed out above, the provision of supporting collar 29 is optional, since the thickened links themselves serve to rigidify the coil through enabling concerted resistance of the several individual rods I1.

The number of series of thickened links to be used is controlled by the width of the grille, three or four laterally spaced series being desirable in the case of an extremely wide grille on the order of 30 feet, and a single centrally disposed series being advantageous in the case of smaller openings on the order of eight feet.

In Figs. 5 and 6, the comparative thicknesses of the links 26 and 24 are illustrated.

If desired, the thickened links 2S may be made of stock such as that shown in Fig. 'I where the link 26' is regularly notched and perforated so that it may conveniently be cut from continuous lengths of stock into link sections which are somewhat lighter and use less metal than the links 26.

The use of a limited number of enlarged supporting links, in conjunction with general use of relatively smaller links throughout most of the grille, effects considerable advantages as to saving of metal and avoidance of weight in grilles of the kind herein contemplated.

The staggered arrangement of links 24, whereby vertically alined links do not extend' continuously but instead connect alternate spaces between the rods, is desirable in that it reduces the total number of links used and enables thicker stock to be employed within a given weight limitation, thus enhancing thei protective value of the closure. This staggered construction also is attractive in appearance as compared with one in which the intermediate links extend continuously. Some of the benefits of the present inventionl may be obtained in a grille having the herein preferred staggered arrangement of links 24 by providing a special supporting row of links continuously in vertical alinement so that every space between the rods is connected instead of alternate spaces in this particular vertical row of links. If this arrangement (not illustrated) is adopted, the extra links occupy space between the convolutions of the coiled grille which otherwise would be empty, and so provide a contacting and supporting structure without necessarily resorting to as much or any thickening or elongating of the special supporting links. In other words, a supporting effect can be obtained by providing a grille in which most of the vertically alined intermediate links are staggered, but in which at least one row of such intermediate links is continuous.

It will be seen that in accordance with the present invention, it is possible to obtain the advantages of the thickened self alining end links In addition, this supporting ability of the thickened links is generally applicable to various types of grilles wherein the sagging problem arises, whether or no-t end links of the particular conguration of the present end links I8 are used and/or where spacing at the ends is obtained by some other means than end links.

It will be seen that there has been provided a structure which is well suited to fulll its intended functions. Since certain changes may be made in the above construction and different embodiments of the invention could ber made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

Having described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

l. A flexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending rods, means supporting said rods only at their ends in the coiled position of the grille, links pivotally connecting adjacent rods at points intermediate the ends of said rods, some but not all of said links having portions adapted, when said grille is coiled, to support portions of links in an adjacent layer of said coiled grille, so as to prevent said rods from sagging between their supported ends.

2. A flexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending rods, means supporting said rods only at their ends in the coiled position of the grille, links pivotally connecting adjacent rods at points intermediate the ends of said rods, some but not all of said links having portions adapted, when said grille is coiled, to support portions of links in an adjacent layer of said coiled grille, and supporting means located between said shaft and the innermost coil of said grille in the vicinity of said mutually cooperating supporting links, and acting therewith to prevent said rods from sagging between their supported ends.

3. A flexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending rods, alined side links pivotally connecting the ends of adjacent rods, spaced links of less thickness than that of said side links pivotally connecting intermediate portions of said rods, and a series of alined links intermediate the ends of said rods and of suflicient thickness to contact and support one another when the grille is coiled.

4. A flexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending rods ilexibly connected by spaced links, said rods and links being formed of similarly sized stock, side links flexibly connecting the ends of said rods, said side links being thicker than said stock, and a series of vertically alined links intermediate the ends of said rods, said last named links being suiciently thick to contact and support one another when the grille is coiled.

5. A flexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending rods, side links supporting said rods at their ends only in the coiled position of the grille, intermediate links flexibly connecting said rods and located out of supporting contact with each other in the coiled position of the grille, and a row of vertically alined links between the ends of said rods and thicker than said intermediate links, said vertically alined links being shaped and positioned to contact and support eachother to enable said rods, when coiled, to act in unison to resist sagglug.

6. A iiexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending rods, means supporting said rods only at their ends in the coiled position of the grille, intermediate links flexibly connecting said rods, and means supporting said rods between their ends comprising a vertically alined row of relatively enlarged intermediate links shaped to contact and support one another when the grille is coiled.

7. A door closure structure comprising a shaft,

a flexible grille including laterally extending rods and links flexibly connecting the intermediate portions of said rods, said grille being attached to said shaft for coiling therearound, means supporting the ends only of said rods when the grille is coiled, a collar between'said shaft and the innermost convolution of said grille for supporting the latter between the ends of the rods, and a row of vertically alined relatively enlarged intermediate links on said rods adjacent said collar, said enlarged intermediate links being shaped to contact and support one another when the grille is coiled.

8. A iiexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending rods, alined side links flexibly connecting the ends of said rods, each side link having an alining rib along one edge and an alining groove along its opposite edge whereby said ribs and grooves on diierent links may mate and preserve alinement of said links during coiling of the grille, means supporting said alining side links when the grille is coiled, intermediate links of less thickness than said side links exibly connecting said rods, and a row of vertically alined relatively enlarged intermediate links shaped to contact and support one another when the grille is coiled.

9. A flexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending spaced parallel rods, alined side links flexibly connecting the ends of said rods, spaced intermediate links flexibly connecting the intermediate portions of said rods, said intermediate links being of less thickness than said side links, and means for preventing said rods from sagging when the grille is coiled, said means comprising a row of vertically alined supporting links between the ends of said rods, said supporting links being flexibly connected to said rods only across alternate spaces therebetween, and being of greater length than the spaces between said rods, whereby the ends of each link project into contacting and supporting relation with respect to others among the supporting links when the grille is coiled.

10. A exible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending spaced parallel rods, alined side links flexibly connecting the ends of said rods, intermediate links of less thickness than said side links flexibly connecting intermediate portions of said rods, and a row of vertically alined supporting links between the ends of said rods and flexibly connecting the same only across alternate spaces therebetween, said supporting links being thicker and of greater length than said intermediate links.

11. A flexible grille adapted to be coiled around a shaft, comprising laterally extending rods, side links supporting said rods at their ends only in the coiled position of the grille, intermediate links exibly connecting said rods and located out of supporting contact with each other in the coiled position of the grille, and a row of vertically alined links between th ends of said rods, said vertically alined links being positioned to contact and support each other to enable said rods, when coiled, to act in unison to resist sagging.

MILTON L. CORNELL. AUGUST H. GRAFF. 

